8 week old transferring from car to cot

I have 26 month old who was also a Gina baby and still is. We are following the routine as best we can and so far it’s working for us. Apart from the lunchtime nap on nursery days.

I leave to pick my daughter up at midday and baby falls asleep, sometimes stirs when I get to nursery and falls back to sleep on the journey home. The issue I have is moving him from the car to the cot.

Most days he wakes when I get the car seat out of the car. If I manage to get the car seat in without waking him he normally wakes when I move him to the cot. I have tried then feeding him to get him back to sleep but this does not work. This then throws us off track for the entire day as it’s a good 1.5 hrs before I can get him back to sleep, he’s then due up at 2:30 to feed!!

Does anyone have any top tips for moving baby from car seat to cot? He’s normally had about 40 mins sleep by the time we get home with about 5 mins awake when I go into the nursery.

I have tried watching his eyes to make sure he’s not in light sleep, I’ve warmed his grobag before moving him into it incase he feels the bed is cold.

With the day then so far off track, what is the neat way to get back on track? I’ve tried following Ginas suggestion of giving him half an hour after 2:30 feed and then half an hour at 4:30pm but I could not get him back to sleep st 4:30 resulting in a very over tired baby!

Comments (4)

6:30/7am-full breastfeed
9am-sleep in car on way to daughters nursery
9:45-home, wakes up
10:15am-half breastfeed-he can not wait much later
11/11:15am-2nd half of breastfeed
11:45/12- sleep in car seat on way to daughters nursery
12:40-home and attempt to move to cot, if moves successfully, sleeps until 2:15/2:30 depending on what time he went to sleep
2:30-breastfeed
4:15-nap 30/45 mins
5pm-half breastfeed
5:45-bath
6:15-2nd half of breastfeed
6:50-bed
10pm-start waking him up
10:30pm full breastfeed

He self settles for bedtime and naps (when done at home). He is no longer swaddled. He has been sleeping through after his 10:30pm feed to between 6:30-7 for about 10 days. I plan to start moving the 10:30pm feed to 10pm after he’s slept through for 2 weeks as per ginas guidance.

You have a great routine. I wouldn’t worry about the lack of transferring in the early days. Some kids learn to transfer well as time goes on. Some never do. I’ve heard people say that the more unpredictable your routine the easier the baby transfers. I’ve heard others say it’s down to personality.

I have an older child who was in a very good routine early on and did not transfer well. She never had to as we planned things around her naps and on the days we couldn’t (hospital appointments for example) we just managed as best we could. She’s a high needs sleeper.

My youngest had to nap on the trot for some of his naps daily. He learnt to transfer well. He still has that ability now. He’s a low/ average needs sleeper.

The only point in your routine I wonder if you may wish to reconsider is the swaddling. Swaddling is for the Moro reflex which doesn’t disappear until somewhere between 3/4mths upto 6mths at the latest. It might be helpful for longer sleep cycles once LO (little one) properly “wakes up” in the next few weeks as well as the upcoming growth spurts. If your LO (little one) prefers arms up there is Love To Dream swaddles which accommodate this preference better.

Take care,

--

Tyra: mum to Leila born in June 2009 (31wks gestation) and Mikael born in October 2013 (39wks gestation)

Thanks Tyra. I use the grosnugs and when we had the hot spell recently it was just too warm (and he is too big!) so I had to move him to a grobag. He does prefer his arms up so will have a look at love to dream.

Once he’s woken at 12:45 when we get home, how would you suggest getting the day back on track? Currently the afternoons are chaos as I’m not sure when to let him sleep, he gets over tired demanding more attention and my two year old is craving time with mummy!

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